Varicose veins - Diagnosis and treatment - Mayo Clinic

To diagnose varicose veins, a healthcare professional examines you. This includes looking at your legs while you're standing to check for swelling. You might be asked to describe the pain and aching in your legs.

To diagnose varicose veins, a healthcare professional might use a test called a venous Doppler ultrasound of the leg. It's a painless test that uses sound waves to look at blood flow through the valves in the veins. A leg ultrasound can help find a blood clot.

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Treatment for varicose veins may include self-care measures, compression stockings, and surgeries or procedures. Procedures to treat varicose veins are often done as outpatient procedures. That means you most often go home on the same day.

Ask your insurer if varicose vein treatment is a covered cost. If varicose vein treatment is done only to make your legs look better, this is called cosmetic. Your insurance might not cover it.

Things you can do to help ease the pain of varicose veins include exercising, raising your legs when sitting or lying down, or wearing compression stockings. Self-care measures also might keep the veins from getting worse.

Wearing compression stockings all day is often the first approach to try. The stockings squeeze the legs, helping veins and leg muscles move blood. The amount of pressure varies by type and brand.

You can find compression stockings at most pharmacies and medical supply stores. You also can get prescription-strength stockings. Insurance might cover the prescription ones if your varicose veins cause symptoms.

If self-care steps and compression stockings don't work, or varicose veins are more severe, a healthcare professional might suggest surgery or other procedures:

Sclerotherapy. A healthcare professional injects the varicose veins with a solution or foam that scars and closes them. In a few weeks, treated varicose veins should fade.

Some veins might need shots more than once. You don't need to be asleep for sclerotherapy. It can be done in a healthcare professional's office.

High ligation and vein stripping. This procedure involves first tying off a varicose vein before the place where it joins a deep vein. The next step is removing the varicose vein through small cuts. This is an outpatient procedure for most people.

Removing the vein won't keep blood from flowing in the leg. That's because veins deeper in the leg take care of the larger amounts of blood.

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Try these lifestyle and home remedies for varicose veins:

Your healthcare professional needs to look at your bare legs and feet to diagnose varicose veins and find the treatment that might be best for your condition.

Your primary health professional might suggest that you see a doctor who specializes in vein conditions, called a phlebologist or vascular surgeon, or a doctor who treats skin conditions, called a dermatologist or dermatology surgeon.

Here are ways to prepare for your appointment.

Make a list of:

Some basic questions to ask include:

Your health professional is likely to ask you questions, including:

Before your appointment, you can begin self-care.

Varicose veins care at Mayo Clinic

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